The Economist president Luke Bradley-Jones will become group chief executive as Lara Boro steps down after seven years.
Bradley-Jones has been president since August 2024 and has led the development of The Economist’s commercial strategy for video and audio, including the launch of video offering The Economist Insider in October last year.
He was previously general manager of EMEA at streaming platform Disney+, chief marketing officer at Sky transforming its on-demand services, and held leadership roles in digital, business development and strategy at BBC Worldwide.
Bradley-Jones, who will take over on 1 August, said: “I am honoured to have been asked to take on the role of CEO of The Economist Group. I love The Economist brand, and believe our unique journalism and world-class business services matter more than ever in today’s turbulent world – a moment that also presents real growth opportunities for the business.”
[Luke Bradley-Jones: Why The Economist isn’t doing AI deals but has launched on Substack]
Boro joined The Economist Group in 2019 and the company said she has overseen a period of “digital transformation and strong commercial growth” with subscriptions rising from 1.1 million to 1.3 million, with over 80% of new subscriptions now digital only and a developed corporate subs offering, plus annual group profit increasing from £31m to over £50m.
In the past year she consolidated the group’s B2B businesses into a single unit called Economist Enterprise serving private and public-sector clients. The group also includes Economist Education, which runs professional training programmes.
Economist Group chair Paul Deighton praised Boro’s “transformational leadership”, saying the business “is now a truly digital-first business that is ready to seize the opportunities of AI.
“The commercial success and business resilience that Lara has fostered during her tenure mean that the independence of The Economist’s world-class journalism is further safeguarded for generations to come.”
He added that Bradley-Jones is the “right leader to take the group forward during this next exciting chapter of change”.
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our “Letters Page” blog